


Ready to Stand

by Amy21



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Werewolves Are Known, Arranged Marriage, Captain Derek Hale, I mean maybe a little, Little Mermaid Elements, M/M, Magic, Mutual Pining, Prince Stiles, but not really, mermaid au, we shall see
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-01
Updated: 2016-09-24
Packaged: 2018-05-24 03:52:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6140664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amy21/pseuds/Amy21
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In three days, Stiles was to be married to a complete stranger for the sake of his kingdom. According to his father, he should be proud, excited even, but all he could think about was Derek, the man from above the surface. Derek, who was the adventure Stiles had been waiting for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay I honestly have no idea how this is going to go. I started this mainly as an escape from everyday life and just sort of ran with it. I hope you enjoy! Feedback is always very much appreciated and loved.

“Stiles!” Scott whined, his tail flicking nervously back and forth, “You’re going to be late again and I promised your dad-“

“Shhh come on Scott we’re not going to be late I just want to get a closer look. Come on, I only have a few days left of freedom don’t you think I deserve a little Stiles time?” Stiles tugged on his best friend’s wrist, pulling him closer to the shadow on the surface. A ship. Stiles _loved_ ships.

“But we’re supposed to be at the dinner party in less than an hour! And it’ll take us at least 30 minutes to swim back given the current at this time of night and-“

“Scott come on this will only take a couple minutes I just want to get a closer look!”

Stiles was lying, of course, but there was no way he was turning back now, he was _so close_

The thing is, Stiles was bored. He was so so incredibly bored with his boring by-the-book life and with every day his craving for adventure was getting worse. I mean, can you blame him? He was supposed to be married in three days to secure a treaty that would merge the kingdoms, and after that he could say goodbye to anything more interesting than attending to the needs of the kingdom. Maybe the occasional day at the sea horse derby, but honestly, how the merpeople could call that entertainment, he had no idea.

“Stiles you know you’re not supposed to go near those things! We could get in so much trouble for this if your father finds out!”

“Relax Scott he won’t find out I’ll make sure of it. If you want to be the best friend in the entire ocean and go cover for me, I won’t tell on you for sneaking out to see Allison”

“Stiles! That was one time!”

“That’s more than enough Scotty boy”

Scott rolled his eyes but agreed and turned around muttering to himself about ‘irresponsible princes’ and ‘Lady Allison is the prettiest mermaid it’s not my fault’  
Stiles chuckled and pushed himself to the surface.

It was the best sensation in the world, Stiles thought, that moment when he reached the surface and felt the change from water to air across his skin. He loved the coolness of the breeze and the way sound travelled above water, not slow and heavy but light and free. Stiles wanted to feel that way more than anything.  
Keeping his head low, he swam closer to investigate the ship. It wasn’t the first time he’d come to the surface for this very reason, and he sincerely hoped that it wouldn’t be the last. As he got closer, he could make out the name on the side of the vessel, The Triskele. Stiles smiled.

Listening to the voices on the ship, Stiles tried to pick out any familiar ones. He secretly hoped he could hear Derek, maybe even catch a glimpse of him this time.  
Stiles had been on many adventures and collected thousands of treasures. From the sparkling coral reef to the deep sea caves where the giant squid slept, yet no adventure had ever brought him a greater treasure than Derek Hale.

Derek was a mystery. He rarely spoke and when he did it was with few words. Although when Stiles first saw his face, he found a story waiting to be told, and he was so eager to discover more.

So he kept coming back to the surface, despite the danger it posed, out of curiosity and longing to know more about the man that was an adventure Stiles wished he could embark on.

“No signs of the Argent’s ship Captain Hale”

That was Boyd, Derek’s first mate. Stiles came here more often than he wished to admit.

“Very good Boyd, thank you”

Feeling more than a little bit daring, Stiles inched closer to the great ship looming on the water. He just had to hear a little bit more, then he would go home. He needed this more than anything, needed the thrill of adventure and the risk of being caught.

As he drew nearer to the ship, he sunk lower in the water to avoid being spotted, but kept his ears above the surface hoping to catch more of the conversation.

“Captain, I believe that we should head back to shore within the hour, we haven’t spotted any other ships and we’re pushing our luck already with the weather.”

This voice called down from the crow’s nest, and Stiles quickly identified it as belonging to Erica, another one of Derek’s most trusted crew members.

“We must go further, it is vital that this territory is secure.”

There was something in Derek’s voice that caught Stiles’ attention. While his tone held it’s usual ‘listen to me I’m the Captain no-nonsense’ quality, there was an edge of something else that had Stiles swimming even a little bit closer. It sounded almost like fear, and it was as if the very sound of it pulled Stiles towards the ship like a magnet. He did not like to think that there was something in this world that Derek feared.

However, those thoughts quickly flew from his mind when someone approached the side of the ship and Stiles finally was able to see Derek.

He looked different from the last time Stiles was able to catch a glimpse of him. He was no longer clean shaven, and his hair had grown out longer as well. Stiles looked for as long as he dared, drinking in the sight of him and committing it to memory.

He wondered if he would ever be able to see him like this again.

The thought itself was overwhelming and Stiles’ tail thrashed anxiously underwater, causing the surface to shimmer and ripple.  
Derek’s eyes, which had been fixed on the horizon, snapped to the area where Stiles lurked.  
Panicking, Stiles quickly dove to get further beneath the surface, but in his haste to pull himself down, his tail flipped up behind him, momentarily breaking the surface before becoming submerged once again.

After he was a good 20 feet under, Stiles stopped to look mournfully back up at the surface. There was no way he could go back up again now, Derek would be too vigilant. Pushing down the hopelessness Stiles felt that his adventure had come to an end, he watched as the ship sailed on across the water. He wasn’t worried about Derek seeing him in the slightest, after all, even if he did catch a small glimpse, there was no way he could have known exactly what it was he saw. He would forget all about it in no time, Stiles was sure of it.

-

Derek knew what he saw. He had already been focusing his senses on located any enemy ship in the area, so the small splash quickly drew his attention. What he saw confused, intrigued, and fascinated him. It looked like the face of a young man. Although it quickly disappeared underwater, Derek remembered seeing wide, brown eyes followed by a flash of red before the water was calm once more. It was the flash of red that Derek couldn’t get out of his mind. In a sea of blues and greens, the red stood out like a beacon. It stuck in his mind long after the water had stilled, for Derek was sure the flash of red came from the tail of a fish. Yet in the same place he thought he had seen the head of a boy.

Derek was already aware of the existence of supernatural creatures, he was one after all. However, the extent of his knowledge was limited so while he was sure there were such things as merpeople, he had never encountered one before. It fascinated him to see just how much of the world he had yet to explore and understand, and he wished he could have gotten a better look before this one swam away.

Derek hoped he would come back.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so happy that you guys are liking the story so far! I hadn't planned on getting another chapter up so soon, but I got really excited when I saw that people were actually reading it. So here you go! This is thanks to everyone who has read so far and enjoyed. Please don't be shy to leave feedback! Okay here we go.

Stiles was silent throughout the rest of the dinner, which was out of character for him to say the least. He had arrived back to the palace only slightly after the start of the second course, which was good enough for him, but apparently not for his father, who was currently sending him _the look_ over the top of his kelp salad. Well at least he was eating healthy.

Stiles poked around at his own food, trying to listen to what everyone was discussing around him (the joining of the two kingdoms, combining their defenses, palace renovations) but really all Stiles could think about was Derek. Although it wasn’t the first time he had gone to the surface to look for him, this time felt different. Something had changed.

This time, Derek had _seen_ Stiles, there was no denying it, and now if Stiles ever wanted to go see him again, he would have to be very careful. That was the thing about humans, they don’t like what they don’t understand, and when they find something they fear, they become dangerous.

Stiles could not be responsible for bringing more threats to his kingdom, after all, they already had their hands full with Kate, the sea witch with an unquenchable thirst for power.

The sad thing about Kate was that she had once lived among them, she was a mermaid after all, but one day something changed in her. Suddenly, her own power wasn’t enough. So she began making deals with the other merpeople, promising them whatever they wanted, fame, wealth, love, but all for a price. No one was ever able to keep their end of the deal, and in response, Kate stole their power and left them to die.

All merpeople have sparks. It is their life-force as well as what allows them to communicate and survive underwater. As Kate stripped others of their spark, she became more and more powerful. She was banished from the kingdom, but Stiles knows she is still out there, biding her time.

This is why Stiles had to be married. Once the two greatest merpeople kingdoms had joined, the combined power of all of the New Kingdom’s subjects would be enough to protect against Kate. At least, this was the hope.

“What do you think, Stiles?”

Stiles’ head snapped up to find everyone around the table looking at him expectantly.

“Um sorry what was the question?” Stiles saw his father out of the corner of his eye pull his hand down his face in exasperation.

“We were discussing the renovations of the east wing,” the lord continued politely, “since we will have to make room for the arrival of Lydia’s people.”

“Right. Well um I think it makes the most sense to start expanding to the north of the wing since we’ll encounter less obstacles in that direction.” Stiles said quickly, and sagged in relief when the rest of the table seemed satisfied with that answer and continued the discussion among themselves. However, his father was still giving him _the look_ and Stiles just knew he was in for another round of The Responsibility Talk later.

Despite Stiles’ best efforts, as he tried to sneak away to his room for the night, he ran right into the one person he was trying to avoid.

“Oh hey pops how’s it hanging? You know that dinner really took it out of me and I was thinking I really needed to get some sleep you know, big day  tomorrow and everything so maybe-“

“Stiles,” His father interrupted, “We need to talk.”

Oh boy here we go.

“Dad, I already know what you’re going to say, okay? That I need to be more responsible because soon it will be my duty to look over the kingdom and I can’t afford to be running off anymore because it isn’t practical or necessary yeah I get it alright? But can you blame me for wanting just a few more moments to myself before I have to carry this huge weight on my shoulders?”

Stiles thought about being above water, how whenever he breached the surface he was able to leave the heaviness behind. A great sense of longing bloomed in his chest.

“Look dad, I’m sorry okay? I know that it’s been really hard since mom died,” Stiles looked down, twisting his fingers in his hands to distract himself from the words he was saying, “I just needed to feel like there were parts of my life that were still under my control. I’m tired of everyone making decisions for me.”

His father looked down on him, a sadness in his eyes.

“Stiles I wish that I had a choice. But the kingdom has to come first. There are too many people depending on us to keep them safe, we can’t afford any more delay.”

Stiles felt the weight of those words settle on his shoulders, and despite the excuses that popped into his mind, he knew they were the unavoidable truth.

“This isn’t the life I wanted for you son, you have to know that, but sometimes life presents us with difficult decisions and the right thing to do won’t always be the easiest. However, it is our responsibility as leaders to make these choices. I’m sorry, Stiles.” His father laid a hand on his shoulder, and Stiles looked up at him.

“I know dad, I’m sorry too.” Stiles saw a flash of pain in his father’s eyes, but then it was gone, replaced by his usual stoic gaze.

“Alright now, time for bed. We’ve got a big day tomorrow after all. You’ll be meeting Lydia in the morning to discuss the final terms for the treaty as well as the details for the wedding. It’s going to be alright son, I’ll be there with you every step of the way.”

Stiles smiled but it was tight and forced.

“Thanks dad, I appreciate it. Night!”

“Goodnight son, I’m proud of you.”

Stiles didn’t know what he had done to deserve that pride, but he smiled and nodded, before turning and continuing on to his room.

It was going to be a long night.

-

Derek let out a breath that he didn’t know he’d been holding as his ship reached the docks. Everyone was safe.

For now.

He couldn’t afford any more delays, for at that very moment, Gerard Argent could be planning a war.

Once everything was secure, he bid goodnight to his crew and returned to the castle where his mother and father were waiting for his report. Nothing today, but that didn’t mean that they were safe.

After finishing up with his parents, he began walking to his room to get some sleep. However, as he walked, his mind wandered back to the boy he had seen in the ocean. He found himself changing course, heading to the library instead. Once there, he walked straight to a familiar shelf and pulled the bestiary off, laying it on a table.

This wasn’t the first time he had poured over this book. He was fascinated by the existence of other supernatural creatures, and was eager to see if the book had any information on merpeople.

He ran his finger down the table of contents, bending down to look closer. There! Excitedly, Derek flipped to the correct page and began to read.

An hour later Derek’s head was swimming with new knowledge. According to the bestiary, merpeople were complex beings with magical abilities that allowed them to thrive underwater. They were each born with a spark that was the essence of their being, and without it, they would die. They used their sparks in a multitude of ways: for medicine, communication, even architecture.

Derek was absolutely entranced, which is why he didn’t notice another presence enter the room until it was right behind him. He spun around.

“Merfolk?” Laura asked with a raised eyebrow. “Why are you reading about that?”

Derek leveled her with a look that he hoped conveyed a ‘stay out of my business’ kind of message, but Laura only rolled her eyes and bent to get a closer look.

“You know the eyebrows thing doesn’t work on me Der-bear, now come on, what’s this all about?”

Derek sighed, but decided it wasn’t worth the argument.

“I think I saw one today.” He finally said.

“A mermaid? Really?” Laura’s eyes were wide.

“No it was a boy,” Derek corrected, and Laura’s eyes went even wider.

“Did he talk to you?” Laura asked excitedly, and Derek frowned.

“No he swam away right after I caught sight of him.”

“Well maybe he’ll come back.” Laura seemed way more into this than Derek anticipated, so he decided it was time to make his exit.

“Maybe. Anyway, I have to get to bed, I’m setting out early again tomorrow.”

Laura nodded grimly, but she still had a spark in her eye that told him they weren’t done with this conversation.

“Alright, night Derek! Let me know if you see your friend again tomorrow!”

Derek rolled his eyes as he left the Library, but there was a small smile on his face.

That night he dreamed of the ocean, with flashes of red just beneath the shimmering surface.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back!! Thank you so much for your patience! I apologize that this update took so long, some things came up in my life recently and I didn't have as much time to write as I would have liked. Please don't lose faith in the story! I have a good idea of where it is going and I am going to do my best to see it through to the end. Anyway, this chapter is longer than the previous two, which I hope helps to make up for the long wait. Hope you enjoy! Your feedback is always much appreciated :)

The following morning, Derek woke very early and dressed for another long day out on the water. He stretched and crossed the room to his balcony, opening the doors and stepping out into the misty morning air. Looking out over the ocean, Derek noted that the waters seemed slightly more agitated than yesterday. He took a deep breath as he felt apprehension stir in his chest. Narrowing his eyes at the horizon, Derek made a note to be extra careful today.

For whatever reason, something felt different, as if the sounds of the waves crashing against the rocky shore contained a warning he couldn’t decipher. Taking another deep breath of salty air, Derek tried to settle the uneasiness that was stirring in his stomach.

Everything was fine. Everyone was safe.

But for how long?

The sun was just beginning to rise as Derek walked down towards the docks, casting its soft, warm glow over the town. The cobblestone street that led down from the castle’s entrance wound through a series of cottages illuminated by the light rising over the mountains that towered behind the castle. This early, the morning dew was still clinging to the grass, and there was a slight chill in the air as gusts of wind blew in from the sea.

Derek loved everything about this place.

As he finally arrived at the docks, he found that the rest of his crew had not yet arrived, so he boarded his ship and began checking the lines and rigging so they would be ready to set off quickly. These days, with the looming threat of the Argents constantly on his mind, Derek could not afford to waste any time. His mission was to protect his people but also to send a message to the Argent nation that the Hale Kingdom was not one to be trifled with.

It was of the utmost importance that Derek remained vigilant and focused; he could not afford even a single distraction.

Yet as he approached the stern of the ship, he found his eyes drifting towards the horizon, scanning the choppy water and yearning for something out there to further disturb the swaying surface. Hoping for something he feared he would never see again.

Lost in his own thoughts, Derek almost didn’t notice the arrival of one of his crew members, Isaac.

“Morning, Captain”

Derek turned to greet the newest crew member. A couple months ago on his way back up to the castle, Derek had come across the boy sleeping in a small alleyway between two shops. All alone and struggling to make ends meet, Derek offered him a job and a room in the castle until he had enough to construct a place of his own.

After a while, Derek learned that Isaac had been bitten by a rouge alpha that had passed through the kingdom the previous year. Although the Hale’s were able to quickly subdue the alpha, they were not fully aware of the trail of destruction it had left in its wake.

For the most part, the Hale kingdom was diverse, welcoming both humans and werewolves and many people accepted this. However, there was the occasional purist that couldn’t stand the idea of the two species living together. Unfortunately for Isaac, his own father was one of these people. After learning what he had become, his father cast him out of his home and left him to fend for himself.

“Morning Isaac, and just call me Derek, we haven’t set out yet”

Isaac ducked his head and didn’t respond. Derek sighed, he was still trying to pull Isaac further out of his shell. He seemed to be nervous in the presence of authority figures, and Derek assumed that had something to do with his father.

“Are you feeling up to a climb? I haven’t checked the sails yet” Derek suggested and Isaac looked grateful to have something to do.

“I’m on it, Derek,” Despite Isaac’s slight hesitation before using his name, Derek was happy with the improvement.

The next two members of his crew to arrive were Boyd and Erica. They usually came together and Derek had speculations as to why, but decided to let them share what they wanted when they were ready.

“Sir, what is the course for today’s patrol?”

As usual, Boyd was straight to the point and no nonsense, which Derek liked about him. He trusted those qualities and came to expect them from his right hand man.

“We’ll head due west until mid-morning, then patrol along the border towards the south until sunset”.

“Isn’t that the same route as yesterday?” Erica asked, a slight frown on her face.

Derek nodded, “Yes but we can’t be too careful. And we can’t be too predictable. If the Argents know the pattern of our patrols then it will be easier for them to find an opening in our defenses”.

“When do we set out,” Boyd continued

Derek looked out over the choppy waters, eyes scanning the horizon out of habit, and the feeling of uneasiness returned in the pit of his stomach.

“As soon as possible.”

-

“Stiles are you up yet?”

Scott’s voice was muffled by the stone door, but it roused Stiles from his sleep nevertheless. He groaned in response.

“Stiles,” Scott chided, “You were supposed to be up an hour ago! Lydia and the rest of her court are going to be here soon.”

Stiles simply groaned again.

“That’s it, I’m coming in” The doors slid open and Scott appeared, his hands on his hips with his signature ‘I don’t get paid enough to deal with this shit’ look on his face. Stiles grinned lazily at him in response.

“Scott! My favorite friend in the whole entire world!”

“Stiles, forget it. Whatever it is you want me to do, the answer is no,”

Stiles pouted, “I was just going to ask a simple question jeez what’s got your tail in a twist?”

Oh boy, the bitchy face was back.

“Stiles I literally have one job and that’s making sure you are in the right place at the right time.”

Stiles chuckled as he finally got up and began attempting to make himself look presentable.

“I hate to be the one to break this to you my friend,” Stiles said, grinning over his shoulder at Scott, “but you suck at your job.”

Scott punched him in the arm.

“Okay okay Scotty boy no need to get physical I’m going,” Scott rolled his eyes in response and Stiles continued. “Anyway can I ask my question now or are you going to hit me again?”

Scott sighed, “Fine Stiles what is it this time?”

Stiles grinned, a wicked glint in his eye, “How well do you think I’d be able to pull off faking my own death?”

Scott hit him again.

-

When they finally made it downstairs to the grand ballroom, Stiles’ father was already there waiting.

“What took you so long,” his father asked, reaching over to smooth down a stray piece of hair that was floating in front of Stiles’ eyes.

“Apologies your majesty,” Scott hastily replied, “It wasn’t our intention to inconvenience you.”

“Scott for the last time call me John, you may work for me but you grew up alongside Stiles. You don’t need to use those fancy titles when it’s just us.”

Scott nodded and John turned to focus his attention back on Stiles.

“Alright Stiles, Lydia should be here any minute. Remember your manners and for Triton’s sake, stay away from the buffet table until after the meeting. We don’t want a repeat of last year’s knighting ceremony.”

“Dad that was one time!”

“One time too many if you ask me…”

Stiles was about to make another sarcastic retort, but he was interrupted by the sound of drums.

“They’re here! Okay Stiles, remember what I told you. You’re going to be fine just don’t get too caught up in that head of yours.”

Stiles smiled up at his dad and saw how the years of running the kingdom had taken their toll.

“You don’t have to worry dad, I’ll make you proud.”

John smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

“If only your mother was here to see this, she would be so proud of you and the man you’ve become.”

Stiles felt his heart lurch painfully at the mention of his mother, but he nodded and smiled reassuringly at his father.

“I got this dad, just you wait and see.”

And with that, Stiles opened the large stone doors which floated along with the rest of the castle, surprisingly light thanks to the magic of their sparks.

The room itself was large, with a dome ceiling made of glass that shimmered and allowed the light from the surface to filter in, making the water appear to glow.

Floating in the middle of the room was the prettiest mermaid Stiles had ever seen in his life.

Her hair was bright red and her tail a sparkling green, but that was not what intrigued Stiles the most. It was her eyes: they held in them an intelligence that was both fascinating and intimidating, and Stiles was excited to learn of the knowledge they contained.

“Prince Stiles,” began a member of the court, “may I present to you Princess Lydia of the Cove Kingdom.”

“It is wonderful to finally meet you face to face, Lydia.” In his excitement, Stiles realized his slight mistake just a second too late.

“Prince Stiles with all due respect you will address the Princess with the proper-”

“Oh please Jackson there’s really no need for that, after all I’m sure we don’t need to waste time with niceties when there are much more pressing matters at hand, am I wrong?”

“N-no your majesty of course not I was simply-” the court member, Jackson, seemed to be struggling to regain composure and Stiles almost felt bad for the guy.

“Wonderful,” Lydia continued, dismissing Jackson once more, “then I suppose it would be best to begin with discussing our knowledge of the enemy and the best plan for raising defenses once our kingdoms have joined. Stiles, do you agree?”

“Sounds fine to me, let’s get started.”

Over the course of the morning, Stiles learned that Lydia was not only very clever, with a multitude of ideas on how to keep the kingdom safe, but also very efficient with how she worked. A combination that made for a perfect leader.

Although Stiles had many good ideas of his own, he felt inferior in Lydia’s presence, a feeling, he imagined, was quite common for those who accompanied her.

By the end of the morning, Stiles was reaching his breaking point. They had poured over plans and considered the benefits and consequences of every idea that was put on the table. Stiles was more than relieved when they finally called for lunch.

“You’re doing very well Stiles, I’m proud of you,” John smiled and this time, Stiles noticed, it did reach his eyes.

“Thanks dad, man, I don’t give you enough credit, this is hard work,” Stiles rubbed at the back of his neck, which was aching from leaning over the table for hours.

John chuckled, “It has its ups and downs.”

Stiles continued to eat, but his mind wandered and ended up stopping on Derek. What a surprise. He wondered where Derek’s ship was today, and if it had found what it was looking for. His heart lurched as it always did when he thought of Derek. He was an adventure that had ended far too soon for Stiles’ liking. Frowning down at his kelp salad, Stiles’ appetite was suddenly lost.

“Stiles,” His father asked, concern flitting over his face, “Is everything-”

_Boom_

Stiles’ head jerked up as a loud, thundering sound rattled the walls of the palace.

Something was very wrong.


	4. Chapter 4

_Boom_

The sound shook the walls once more, and immediately, everyone sprang into action. Rushing through the main double doors of the castle, Stiles’ eyes swept over the expanse of the kingdom, trying to single out any abnormality.

There was nothing.

Everything looked as it should, the villagers’ white coral houses floated peacefully, and the guard towers along the perimeter were all intact.

_So what is making that sound?_

Startled and confused, the merpeople were beginning to gather in the main square, looking around anxiously as they tried to identify the source of the noise. Suddenly, a voice rang out.

“Look at the surface!”

All heads turned and Stiles was amazed he hadn’t noticed the shadows of two ships until now.

They were battling, that much was clear. The sound of cannons continued to shake the walls, and cannon balls were beginning to drift down through the water, pulled further towards the depths.

“There is no need for any alarm,” his father spoke out to the people, using his very best ‘I’m the king and everything is under control’ voice.

“I have heard rumors of two surface kingdoms on the brink of war. Like always, we must not get involved in their affairs, and allow them to settle their differences alone.” He paused, clearing his throat and looked out over the crowd, “As you all know, this is a time of change for our kingdom.  We are joining together against a common enemy, one who has caused nothing but fear and destruction for us all. It is because of this that we cannot afford any distractions. We must do our best to protect what we know, and allow the surface dwellers to do the same.”

The new information made Stiles feel dizzy and slightly ill. _War._ But that would mean…

His heart went cold.

“Dad,” he tried desperately to get his father’s attention without drawing that of the crowd, “Listen to me, I need to go up there.”

John looked appalled.

“You will do no such thing, weren’t you listening-“

“You don’t understand,” Stiles continued, ignoring his father’s stony glare, “I know that ship, I know the people on it. They’re good people, dad and they need help. Please, I’m begging you, I can help them!”

“You have been talking to the surface dwellers?” His father’s voice was quiet with his contained anger, and Stiles knew he would have to play his cards just right in order to make this work.

“No dad listen,” Stiles began, but John was quick to cut him off.

“No, you listen. They,” He gestured wildly towards the surface, “are not our concern. This,” another gesture, this time towards the crowd still lingering in the square, “This is our responsibility. To protect _our_ people. I can’t have you running off to play the hero when there are more pressing matters at hand. This isn’t one of your adventures Stiles, it’s time for you to grow up.”

Stiles felt as if he’d been struck. Those words settled in his chest and began to simmer, growing and growing into an almost uncontrollable rage.

“I have grown up,” He hissed, “I grew up the minute mom died and you know that. Yes, I care about the kingdom, but I cannot stand by and watch more people I care about die.”

Stiles turned away from the shock and pain on his father’s face, and his eyes caught Lydia’s. She was watching him, and the ever present thoughtful look in her eye seemed even more intense as she regarded him.

“I have to do this,” Stiles said quietly, still looking at Lydia but speaking to more than just her, “I’m sorry”

Using a small burst of magic, Stiles shot himself towards the surface, trying to ignore the feeling of guilt that settled in his chest.

-

Stiles surfaced a little ways away from the two ships, but immediately he recognized the Triskele. He felt both relieved and worried that his suspicions were confirmed.

From what he could see, the Triskele was putting up a good fight against the enemy ship. The noise was deafening, much louder than anything from beneath the surface. Cannons fired and voices shouted orders and warnings that Stiles began to make out.

“Captain! Erica is down, and her wounds aren’t healing fast enough!”

“Captain, there’s something not right about this, I’ve got a bad feeling”

“Captain the lower levels are taking on water!”

“Listen up!” Stiles froze as Derek’s voice stood out against the rest. “Their weapons have adapted, we must be smart about how we attack. They’re better with long-range so we have to get closer. If we can board their ship we will have the upper hand. Let’s move!”

Stiles quickly ducked underwater and swam as fast as he could towards the enemy ship. As he broke the surface he heard something that made his blood run cold.

“The wolves are wounded men! They are not built for this kind of battle. I imagine they will try and get close enough to board us. If that happens, none of us will survive. Use everything we’ve got, I want that ship blown out of the water. On the General’s orders there will be no survivors.”

A chorus of cheers rang out and the sound of cannon fire began again with renewed vigor.

Stiles’ thoughts raced, and he tried not to panic. If Derek brought his ship closer it would only make them an easier target. They would never get the chance to board. He had to do something. Fast.

Taking a deep breath of the clean ocean air, Stiles cleared his mind of everything but one thought. His mother.

He remembers it so clearly. How her illness resisted all the medicines and magic they tried. How she kept smiling until the very end.

Her words. Her final words to him.

“Be strong, my love. I will always be with you.”

Stiles felt his spark come to life, beginning in the center of his chest and spreading outwards, filling his body with a tingling numbness. His eyes focused on the ship, and with a flick of his wrist, a tiny ball of gold light shot towards the center of the vessel.

Upon impact, the light exploded, sending a ripple of energy out in all directions. The enemy ship began to sink, soon to be claimed by the sea.

Stiles grinned, feeling the remains of his spark fizzling in the tips of his fingers. However, upon turning back towards the Triskele, he realized he had been too late.

Their ship, too, was slowly being taken by the ocean. The cannons had left their mark and the crew rushed about, trying to pile into the lifeboat. Stiles watched as they all filed in, until only Derek remained on board, doing last checks to make sure everyone was accounted for.

All of the sudden, something whistled through the air, landing in Triskele. It exploded upon impact, and the deck burst into flames.

“Go to hell, freaks!” It was the same voice that had been giving orders on the enemy ship. He had attacked in a final attempt to take out the Triskele, and Stiles looked on in horror as Derek froze at the sight of the flames in front of him.

“Captain! Derek! Get in, quickly!” Boyd bellowed, trying to startle Derek out of his haze. But Derek didn’t move. Stiles swam closer anxiously. _Why won’t you move?_

All of the sudden, Derek sprang into action. The flames had blocked off his path to the lifeboat. He ran over to the opposite rail, and without looking back, vaulted over the side and into the water below. Stiles quickly dove under to watch as Derek began pushing himself back to the surface.

“Captain!” Boyd called again, but they were too far away. The lifeboat hadn’t reached the water yet, and the ship was falling apart too fast. Debris rained down around them, and Stiles swam back to avoid a piece of the mast as it came crashing down. He watched Derek franticly try to swim away from the burning ship, but he wasn’t fast enough. Another piece of debris fell, catching him in the shoulder, and just like that, Derek was gone.

Stiles dove under the waves, and searched franticly for the piece of debris that had hit Derek.

“No no no, c’mon Stiles, think!” He muttered anxiously as he swam, ducking and weaving through the remains of the ship. There!

Stiles sped up, rushing over to where Derek was being slowly pulled down by the wreckage. Stiles jerked him free and began tugging him back towards the surface.

As they burst into the open air, Stiles saw that Derek’s eyes were closed. He wasn’t breathing.

“Oh no you don’t buddy, you are not going to die on me like this. This rescue would be very depressing if you didn’t live through it, so you are going to start breathing. Right now, c’mon.” Stiles felt his hands begin to tingle again, his spark responding to his agitation.

“Look I had it all planned out, did you know that? How we would meet for the first time. You would be sitting at the dock and I would swim up and startle you but you would like me anyway and then we’d talk until the sun went down.” Stiles was buzzing with magic, but he hardly noticed as he franticly tried to hold Derek above water.

“I don’t want the adventure to end like this, Derek, please. You don’t even know my name, I have so much I want to tell you although, I’m really not supposed to look at you let alone talk to you. But I don’t care about that so please wake up.”

A loud, crackling sound filled the air and all of the sudden Derek began to sputter and cough. He took in great, gasping breaths and began to open his eyes.

Stiles panicked. He spun Derek around and pushed him onto a piece of floating debris before disappearing once more beneath the surface.

-

“Captain!”

Derek was pulled onto the lifeboat by his crew, who looked at him with a mixture of relief and lingering anxiety.

“We thought you didn’t make it,” Isaac said, looking sick at the thought.

“I’m fine. I’m okay.” Derek’s head was spinning. He felt as though he had just woken up from a long sleep. His eyesight was slightly blurred, and everything sounded far away.

“Captain, you should take it easy, you don’t look very good.” Boyd said, precise and practical as always. “Once we get back to shore we need to alert the kingdom.”

“Wait, I still don’t understand what happened to the Argent scout ship,” Erica said, looking over towards its remains. “How could it have just exploded like that?”

“It was him,” Derek said, his head suddenly clear.

“What?” Erica looked concerned, “Who?”

“I don’t know his name,” Derek stared out towards the horizon, “I’ve seen him before, just once. But he was here. He saved me. He saved all of us.”

“Derek,” Boyd began, his eyes full of worry, “Maybe you hit your head-“

“ _No_ ” Derek growled, and the crew snapped to attention. Derek relaxed a little, and looked at Boyd as he spoke.

“I didn’t hit my head.” Derek coughed, some seawater still caught in his chest. “I was drowning,” he continued, his voice quiet.

“He pulled me to the surface. He was,” Derek paused, considering. “He was _talking_. So much. He never stopped talking.”

“What happened,” Boyd said, “Where did he go?”

“He swam back down, I barely saw him and he just vanished again.” Derek sighed, staring intently at the waves lapping at the side of the boat, as though he could summon the boy once more, if he only stared hard enough.

“Sorry, what do you mean he swam back down?” Erica looked at him like he really had hit his head on something.

“He’s a mermaid” Derek deadpanned, glaring at Erica. She shrugged.

“Alright so he’s a mermaid then. That still doesn’t explain why he ran away.”

Derek nodded, he had been asking himself that same question. Why _did_ he run away? He had helped them, Derek assumed. Based on the force of the blast that had taken out the Argent ship, Derek believed that the boy must have used his spark. But as much as Derek wanted to speculate about the boy, he had more pressing matters to attend to.

Clearing his throat of saltwater, he addressed his crew.

“Never mind that now, the point is that we’re alive and we need to get back to the kingdom as soon as possible.”

Derek looked at the wreckage of his ship, a vessel that had given him freedom, had given him hope.

“It’s time to prepare for war.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I think I owe you all an apology. This chapter is long, long overdue and I really never intended it to be that way. I'm very sorry for the delay, and hope you can still enjoy the story despite the wait. 
> 
> I have been reading fanfiction for a very long time, and probably would have never had the bravery or confidence to publish my work had it not been for the countless authors that have inspired me along the way. They work very hard and are endlessly kind and patient. I have always admired that so much.
> 
> However, I doubt I would have gotten this far in the story if it weren't for you guys, the readers. I truly didn't think very many people would read this, and I have to say, it is always so exciting to see your feedback and reactions. 
> 
> So thank you, as always, for taking the time to read this story and I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
> 
> And finally, to any other authors out there, thank you for all your hard work and dedication. You inspire me to keep on creating.


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